Device for feedins and controlling material



DEVICE FOR FEEDING AND CONTROLLING MATERIAL Filed Dec. 11, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. 5.

W. ROSS DEVICE FOR FEEDING AND CONTROLLING MATERIAL iled Dec. 11, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 W. ROSS DEVICE FOR FEEDING AND CONTROLLING MATERIAL Filed Dec. 11, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Dec. 6, 1927.

UNITE]? STATES WILLIAM R085, 01 SUBBITON, ENGLAND.

DEVICE FOR FEEDING AND CONTROLLING MATERIAL.

Application filed December 11, 1925, Serial No.

The invention relates to the feeding and controlling of the flow of materials such as coke, coal, stone, sand, ore or other granular or pulverulent or like material whether the same be free running or sticky and reluctant, and whether the material is to be delivered from storage bins or other receptacles or whether the devices are to be employed for accelerating, retarding or stopping the flow of materials already in motion.

So far as relates to the natural flow of materials from the opening of storage bins and the like it will be clear that such flow will vary according to whether the material is small or large or whether it is mixed and varying in size and also with the shape of the material and upon its running qualities, that is to say, whether it is clean. and free running or sticky and reluctant. An operator engaged in lifting and lowering a slide gate to suit these changes in the material and maintain an even tonnage flow must be very quick and however skilled he may be it is exceedingly diflicult for him properly to control the flow since, for example, one large piece of material may prevent the lowering of the gate in a manner which would be required to stop the rapid flow of small material.

So far as relates to material already in motion, such as in an open chute or slide, high velocity of flow may be detrimental in many ways and especially in the case of coal, coke and like friable materials it would lead to breakage of the material during motion and when brought suddenly to rest at its destination. Moreover a change or changes of material may on the other hand decrease the speed so that the material will either overflow the sides of the chute or slide or its flow will be entirely arrested.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple and efficient form of feeding and control device which will give automatically proper control of the flow of materials under all the above conditions or other conditions that may be met with in practice and which will enable the flow opening or outlet from bins to be made of ample dimensions to ensure the passage of material without bridging or jamming while at the same time providing for any necessary adjustments that may be required to be made to suit varying changes in the material or to suit tonnage changes that may be required.

The invention consists in a feeding and 74,826, and in Great Britain December 11, 1924.

control device for materials adapted automatlcally to adjust itself to the character of the material or to the varying conditions under which it is required to work.

The invention also consists in a feeding and control device for materials adapted to move 1n a c1rcular, elliptical, elongated or other path and yielding or movable in relatlon to the material and to the outlet or openmg through which the material is to flow or ls-flowlng. i

The invention also consists in a feeding and control device of the above character which itself is of a flexible character to provide for the necessary automatic adjustment.

The invention further consists in a feeding and control device of the above character formed from flexible link belting suitably mounted in relation to the flow opening outlet or channel.

The invention also consists in a feeding and control device for materials according to the preceding paragraph in which the flexible link belting carries bars or like feed device assist in the terial.

The invention further consists in a feeding and control device for materials comprising a disc having bars secured thereon either directly or through the medium of links or other suspensory means, the disc or wheel being movable about a centre so that its position may be adjusted in relation to the flow opening or channel.

The invention also consists in other details and arrangements hereinafter described or indicated.

The accompanying drawings illustrate more or less diagrammatically three modes of carrying out the invention Figures 1, 2 and 3 are respectively a sectional elevation, side elevation and end elevation of one form of apparatus in accordance with the invention;

Figure 4 is a view of a modification;

Figures 5 and 6 are respectively a side elevation and end elevation of a further modification, and

Figure 7 is a section of a modification of the arrangements shown in Figures 5 and 6.

In carrying my invention into efl'ect in one convenient manner as, for example, in its application to the control of flow of material from a storage bin, and as shown in Figures 1 to 3, I arrange for the'outlet opening a feeding and control device comprising movement of the maa series of bars a carried upon an endless link belt 6 or belts, the links of which engage with a sprocket wheel or wheels 0 or other device by which the links may be cont1nu ously moved so as to move the bars carried thereby for the purpose of controlling the feeding of the material.

The sprocket or sprockets carrying the belt or belts is or are mounted upon a shaft ing tonnage flow) can be effected by raising or lowering the device by means of adjusting screws 6 or any other suitable contrivance, it being understood, however, that the movement is, a relative one compared with the outlet opening so that the outlet may be moved for the purpose of adjustment instead of moving the feed device.

When in operation the device will yield readily to give passage to large pieces of material even though the device and.its members be very heavy, this yielding being due to the fact that the movement of the device is arrested momentarily at the large pieces of material and the belt or chain therefore slackens above that point. When not in motion, however, there is no such special yielding capacity in the device and the whole mass of the device therefore operates to resist the passage of the material and to stop the flow.

In order that the weight of the outer or returning part of the device may assist this resisting pressure the links of the chain belt may be provided with angled or bevelled ends which when at the vlower end of the path of the belt lock against plates f provided for the purpose by which means a substantial part of the weight of the return portion of the belt is transferred to the operative or feeding side. I

In some cases it may be an advantage to increase the pressure of the operative side of'the device, and, moreover, to increase the pressure more at one point than at another, and these may be accomplished in various ways. Thus, for example, I may provide within the belt or band, rollers g rotatably mounted upon shafts h attached to which are links z' adapted to sustain such shafts and rollers from the shaft d upon which the sprocket wheel is mounted or preferably from an extension hubv of the bearings carrying such shaft. Such shafts may be weighted together or independently to give varying resistance to the device while by movin them outwards away from the operative side of the belt this part may be relieved of any extra pressure due to the shafts, and if they are moved sufliciently far to engage the return side of the device, part of the pressure of the latter may thus be relieved from the operative side.

The bars employed may be plain or hollow bars of any convenient section, or they may be flexible in themselves and/or they may have fixed and/or yielding spikes or similar attachments for the purpose of increasing the extent of contact or grip upon uneven material. Moreover, in place of the link belts the bars may be carried by one or more endless strands of link, chain and/or belt. rod, or any other flexible carriers.

Moreover, the belt or chain or the like may be of any suitable length and it may be supported at a plurality of points (as shown in Figure 4:) by means of sprockets c, c, 0" or the like instead of being supported only at the top as in the foregoing example.

Furthermore, in place of making the feeding and control device of a flexible character it may be of a more or less rigid or unyielding character, in which case it will be movably mounted so that it may be adjusted bodily in relation to the outlet or flow channel. Thus, for example, the bars or the like a may be mounted upon a disc or discs is either directly (as shown in Figures 5 and 6) or through the intermediary of links Z or other movable members (as shown in Figure 7) (in which latter case the links may also be directly interconnected by chains Z or the like) and the shaft of the drum or disc or discs may carry sprockets m adapted to engage link belts or the like a which engage a further sprocket 0 or set of sprockets carried upon a shaft p mounted in bearings carried by the storage bin or other structure. The link belts or the like in this case may themselves be the means of suspension for the drum or disc or discs so that the latter may be movable bodily in relation to the feed opening or flow channel or the shafts of the respective sprockets'may be coupled together by connecting bars or links 1' to limit their distance apart and to relieve the belts of the strain of the drum weight.

Such connecting bars or links may be adjustable in length for the purpose of adjusting the belt tension, and in this construction it will be seen that practically the whole weight of the drum or disc or discs or other rotary member carrying the bars comes into operation upon the material.

It is. however, to be understood that the foregoing details of construction are given purely by way of illustration as it is clear that since the invention consists essentially in a feeding and flow control device adapted 1 til automatically to adjust itself to variations in the conditions under which it is to operate I may vary the form and construction of such device, the manner of arranging the same in relation to the opening or channel through or along which the material is to flow and the means adopted for rotating the feed device either by hand or by power depending upon the purpose for which the invention is to be employed, the character of materials to which it is to be applied or any practical conditions that may have to be fulfilled.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is:

1. Mechanism for controlling the flow of granular or pulverulent or the like material in chutes or slides, comprising a rotatable shaft placed above the chute or slide, a wheel or wheels secured to said shaft, an endless flexible band engaging said wheel or wheels and suspended therefrom, the endless band being flexible along its length to form varieties of shapes in correspondence with the upper contour of the material in the chute or slide.

2. Mechanism for controlling the flow of granular or pulverulent or the like material in chutes or slides, comprising a rotatable shaft placed above the chute or slide, a wheel or wheels secured to said shaft, an endless flexible band engaging said wheel or wheels and suspended therefrom, the endless band being flexible along its length to form varieties of shapes in correspondence with theupper contour of the material in the chute or slide.

3. Mechanism for controlling the flow of granular or pulverulent or the like material in chutes or slides, comprising a rotatable shaft placed above the chute or slide, a wheel or wheels secured to said shaft, endless fiexible bands engaging said wheel 01' wheels and suspended therefrom, each endless band being flexible along its length to form varieties of shapes in correspondence with the upper contour of the material in the chute or slide withwhich it is in contact.

4. Mechanism as described in claim 3, in which each band is flexible sideways and displaceable in transverse relation to the direction of flow of the material in the chute or slide.

5. Mechanism as described in claim 3, in which the bands vary in length and move substantially apart at their lower point of travel.

6. Mechanism as described in claim 3 including means arranged to engage the inner side of the orbit or orbits whereby the pressure of the orbit or orbits upon the material may be varied.

7. Mechanism for controlling the flow of granular or pulverulent material in chutes or slides, comprising a rotatable shaft placed above the chute or slide, wheels secured to said shaft and spaced apart transversely of the chute, flexible bands attached at their ends to the periphery of said wheels and suspended loosely therefrom, each band being flexible along its length to form a variety of shapes in correspondence with the upper contour .of the material in transverse relation to its direction of flow.

8. Mechanism as claimed in claim 7, in which bars or the like Weighted means are interposed centrally of the suspended bands.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

WILLIAM ROSS. 

